It’s science at work, not god or Frankenstein or magic

Yesterday, American geneticist J.Craig Venter, the enfant terrible of modern science, made the sensational announcement that he and his team of 23 scientists have created life in the lab. This was followed by a feeding frenzy across the globe as media organizations hyped it beyond imagination, while several religious and ethical groups attacked Venter for playing god. Dire warnings of mutant bacteria escaping from labs (or getting stolen by terrorists) and wiping out the human race also surfaced.

This is a typical case of selling a scientific advance through hype, and in the process, misinforming the people. And, there are enough weirdoes in the world who see every move in science as apocalypse. Let’s sift the wheat from the chaff.

First, the background: All living things are made of cells. Each cell is controlled by a genome, which is DNA strands built up from four amino acids (called bases). These bases are put together in a particular order that decides the nature and activities of the cell. The sequence of bases in genomes of humans and various other species have been worked out. Techniques for inserting small portions of DNA from one source into another genome also have been around for several years. Small strands of DNA too have been synthesized earlier (KP Nambiar et al synthesized the first 330-pair gene in 1984).

So what did Venter do? Taking a bacterium known to have a small genome, he and his team copied its genome through standard sequencing techniques. Then he bought small bundles of DNA from another company, which makes and stocks all kinds of DNA bits. Then – and this is new – Venter put together a sequence with 1.08 million bases pairs. In the process some errors crept in which they removed. They also inserted some sequences, created by them, to act as ‘watermarks’ to prove that the DNA was synthesized and not simply lifted from another cell. Then they put this genome into a ‘dead’ bacterium – that is, in which the rest of the cell was there but not the genome. The artificial genome ‘booted up’ the cell and it started multiplying like any normal cell. All this cost about $40 million and took 15 years.

Undoubtedly, this is a major advance in the science of synthetic biology. From bits and pices we have moved forward to inserting a full genome. But ‘creating’ life? That’s just hype. The genome in this case was just 1% of the cell into which it was inserted. The rest 99% was absolutely natural. Also, we are talking about a very simple genome of very simple bacteria. Life is infinitely more complex. The human body, for example, contains 30-40 trillion cells, and each cell contains a DNA sequence of 3 billion base pairs. But a significant step was indeed taken.

And what about the ‘synthetic’ bacterium escaping/getting stolen and wreaking havoc? Relax, for it is just a copy of the original, with a few markers thrown in. The chances are really remote that it will turn into a Frankenstein.

The advance announced by Venter opens the way for many possibilities. Sometime in the future, perhaps we can have tweaked microbes that can turn algae into hydrocarbons (Venter has tied up with Exxon, the oil behemoth to work towards this), or we can have tweaked microbes producing important drugs (Venter is working with GlaxoSmithkline on flu vaccines), and so on.

A word of caution: in today’s world of instant gratification, small advances are routinely inflated. Science proceeds at its own pace. Indeed, when Venter sequenced the human genome in 2000, he and the whole world’s media breathlessly declared that all kinds of benefits were just a blink away. A decade later, what do we have? A mind boggling collection of genome sequences but no cures for diseases and other promised benefits.

So, take the hype with a pinch of salt, even while saluting the scientists who are working on various things. Also, remember Arthur C. Clarke’s third law: any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

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Author

Subodh Varma is with the Times Insight Group, a small entity within the giant Times of India, tasked with digging deep and distilling the how, why and when of every happening thing. Having studied science in college and having worked for a few years as a scientist of sorts, helps. On the other hand, having been involved in social and political issues puts the science bit in perspective.

Subodh Varma is with the Times Insight Group, a small entity within the giant Times of India, tasked with digging deep and distilling the how, why and when . . .